Charles de Gaulle, French general and politician, 18th President of France (born 1890)

Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Republic from 1944 to 1946 to restore democracy in France. In 1958, amid the Algiers putsch, he came out of retirement when appointed Prime Minister by President René Coty. He rewrote the Constitution of France and founded the Fifth Republic after approval by referendum. He was elected President of France later that year, a position he held until his resignation in 1969.

The president of France is the head of state of France, elected by popular vote for five years.